Cleaning Up Our Act

By: Beth McHugh 2006

Not too many of us made it through childhood and adolescence within
being told on numerous occasions to clean up our room. Most of us hated
it! But, in hindsight, when our mothers hounded us to “clean up
our act” they were unknowingly giving us a gift. A gift that we
can use to our advantage for the rest of our lives. So how can cleaning
up our room in adolescence have an effect on our later lives? Read on…

Although we most probably rebelled at being asked repeatedly to clean
our rooms, there was more going on than just physically cleaning out
four walls. We were also decluttering our minds and our lives.

Cluttered rooms and cupboards are often the sign of a cluttered mind.
If you’re feeling out of control of your life right now, or you
feel that everything is getting on top of you, go clean out a closet.

Just as cluttered rooms may point to a cluttered mind, messy houses
may indicate messy lives. Getting rid of the physical clutter in our
house is often the quickest and most cost-effective means for gaining
a sense of control as well as a feeling of personal accomplishment.

It almost gives us a blank slate on which to “start again.”
From this position of control, we can then go on to tackle more difficult
problems in our lives in the knowledge that we have literally “cleaned
up our own backyard.”

Cleaning out a messy drawer, a cupboard, a room, or an entire house
can really imbue you with a sense of power. It’s the equivalent
of saying to the universe: “Look, my house is in order!”
Mentally, it can give our mood a real spring clean.

Clearing clutter provides both physical exercise and mental calisthenics.
We see our house is cleansed and we feel our minds are cleared. We often
work through problems as we clean. Thoughts come to mind and the physicality
of housework helps the psychic energy produced to be released in exercise.
There is less chance of blocked energy creating tensions, anxieties,
and depression in our bodies and minds.

Our mothers were unwittingly giving us a great gift when they told
us to “go clean our rooms.” You can use this gift to your
own advantage in sorting many of your life problems. And you can continue
the process by passing on the gift to your own children!